So you know how I said that I go through music phases?

Thing I Found of the Week:

Hobbes and Bacon. Just like last week’s thing, this isn’t actually something new. Rather, it’s something old that I just kind of stumbled across while clearing out bookmarks. It would seem that my Spring Cleaning efforts have also gone into my digital world. Anyway, I thought I’d go ahead and share this little thing. It comes from an online comic strip by the name of Pants are Overrated. The first link was just an imgur thing, this one goes to their actual site. If you’re like me, you grew up on Calvin & Hobbes comics. This is a four-comic mini series of an adult Calvin, married, and with a child of his own. I liked what I saw wish they would have done some more. On to the actual thing.

My “Music Phases”:

In my post for the March 2012 Playlist of the Month, I mentioned that I go through musical phases. Here’s what I mean. I periodically change my playlists and general musical taste. No, maybe that’s not the right wording… hmm. My tastes are my tastes, and while they do change over time, they usually only change in a rapid fashion with the advent of something new. By “something new” I mean something new to me. In other words, while it could be an entirely new genre of music to the world at large that spins me off into a new taste in music, it could also be a song from the ’70s that really brings me back to my high school driving playlist (which was mostly Classic Rock, Blues, Metallica, and System of a Down). That song or band or genre or jimjam strikes a cord (heh) with me and my current taste shifts. But I’ll change tastes even without something new. I suppose it’s more of a mood thing. Here’s an example.

Week 1 – I’m listening to whatever

Week 2 – I liked a song I heard so now I’m searching for similar songs

Week 3 – Some horrible or otherwise kinda bumming thing happened in my life, so now it’s all Blues for a while

Week 4 – I recognize that the Blues is feeding a bad funk, so I pick it up with some Jazz.

Week 5 – The Jazz is great but maybe a bit much so it’s time for something new. Let’s check out some Top 40

Halfway through Week 5 – Top 40 eats dick, except for maybe that band and this rap group. Let’s see if there’s anything else kinda like it…

Week 6 – You know? I still really like Metallica. Let’s listen to everything that they ever made, except not St. Anger because that album is abysmal

Week 8 – Alright, this stuff is great but fucks with my moods. Wash it all out with some Beatles. Ease into some Classic Rock.

Week 9 – Yeah, but I really like Tupac, Biggie, and that first album from DMX

Week 10 – Chick rock

Week 11 – Back to whatever

Week 12 – I found a song I liked, let’s find more like it

Week 13 – Back to Classic Rock for a while

Etc…

It’s never exactly like that. The order changes, the length of each phase fluctuates, but I think you get the idea. In fact, this whole “I need something new” concept is pretty new for me. I’m sure that I’ve already gone over this, but there was at least one big period where I just straight up didn’t even want new music. Fuck-off, I got these bands and don’t need no others. I started feeling musically stunted. Like when you think about the stereotypical older person and the only music they accept was the handful of bands that they were super into before they hit 30. As I approach 30 myself, I think back on the shitty attitudes my generations parents and grandparents had to Rap and Hip-Hop. Remember? That whole “That’s not even music” attitude. It’s a shitty way to be and I’m not about to let myself turn into that particular type of curmudgeon. As such, it’s been a personal mission of mine to at least try out new shit. I’m trying to have as open a mind toward music as I possibly can.

However, I also need to stay true to myself. As such, while I’m totally cool to try out new things and I’m steering away from calling things total shit, I’m not going to pretend like there aren’t things that I don’t like. I’m pretty sure that I have already covered this. To add to this understanding of my tastes and openness, I try not to snap judge thing. Particularly for their instrumental aspects. Afterall, while some of the world’s most recognized music is truly incredible, most of our famous songs are kinda… basic. But the songs that I like can be basic. The White Album is the most complex of collection of the Beatles’ work, but it isn’t my favorite. It’s a matter of feel. Dragonforce is technically an amazing band. The shit that they can do with their instruments and on their instruments is awesome. Their talent and practiced skills may, in our current generation, be unmatched. I am thoroughly impressed. But not a single one of their songs is on any of my playlists. As awesome as they are I really don’t enjoy them. I need to feel something from your music. While I’m sure that there are folks that can feel something from Dragonforce’s music, I just don’t. I don’t feel anything for Electronica music and I only feel something from most other club music when I’m actually in a club. Even then, it’s either just a strong desire to dance or a stronger desire to get the fuck out. But I don’t want to belabor this point in this post. I feel I could have more to say about it, and today’s joint has gone on long enough.

tl;dr – I tend to listen to similar musical styles for given stretches. The styles I listen to change over time. And I don’t like emotionless music or, apparently, old people.

Yep. Guess I just found out that I’m accidentally an “age-ist”. Strange. Also – I’m planning on some shorter and dirtier posts in the near future. The recent post have mostly just been on my mind lately and easier to pound out. And I am a very lazy man. Here’s the deal: